It was the summer of 2001. The media were in a frenzy over sharks before Sept. 11 changed everyone's focus. New Smyrna Beach and Volusia County were well on their way toward a record-setting year for shark bites. The majority of news outlets were calling them shark attacks.

12 years later the American Elasmobranch Society, which is all about sharks, rays and skates, has sent a letter to The Associated Press and Reuters urging them to be more accurate when describing human-shark relations. The often-quoted International Shark Attack File based at the University of Florida is an offshoot of this society.

In the letter, the group says the media uses "the term 'shark attack' in a sensationalizing manner" and "can reinforce misleading stereotypes of shark behavior and may undermine public support for shark conservation."

So what to use instead?

Bob Hueter, Director of the Center for Shark Research and Christopher Neff, a Ph.D. student at Sydney University came up with more accurate desciptions of human-shark interactions.

In a paper published January 2013 in the Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, the duo posit "A loaded phrase such as 'shark attack' compounds the perceptions of other crimes and outcomes, similarly to the term 'home invasion.'"

So they came up with a list of four descriptions that are based on outcome, rather than the shark's intent.

1. Shark sightings: Sightings of sharks in the water in proximity to people. No physical human–shark contact takes place.

2. Shark encounters: Human-shark interactions in which physical contact occurs between a shark and a person, or an inanimate object holding that person, and no injury takes place. For example, shark bites on surfboards, kayaks, and boats would be classified under this label. In some cases, this might include close calls; a shark physically “bumping” a swimmer without biting would be labeled a shark encounter, not a shark attack. A minor abrasion on the person’s skin might occur as a result of contact with the rough skin of the shark.

3. Shark bites: Incidents where sharks bite people resulting in minor to moderate injuries. Small or large sharks might be involved, but typically, a single, nonfatal bite occurs. If more than one bite occurs, injuries might be serious. Under this category, the term “shark attack” should never be used unless the motivation and intent of the animal—such as predation or defense—are clearly established by qualified experts. Since that is rarely the case, these incidents should be treated as cases of shark “bites” rather than shark “attacks.”

4. Fatal shark bites: Human–shark conflicts in which serious injuries take place as a result of one or more bites on a person, causing a significant loss of blood and/or body tissue and a fatal outcome. Again, we strongly caution against using the term “shark attack” unless the motivation and intent of the shark are clearly established by experts, which is rarely the case. Until new scientific information appears that better explains the physical, chemical, and biological triggers leading sharks to bite humans, we recommend that the term “shark attack” be avoided by scientists, government officials, the media, and the public in almost all incidences of human–shark interaction.

Florida has a reputation for being one of the craziest states in the country and it's not without good reason. We're hit by hurricanes and tornadoes almost every summer, we have the title of being the lightning strike capital of the country and we've got a handful of crazy Florida men and women...